Spelling Software Made for Teaching in Australia to Australian Kids

'A Day at the Beach' is a spelling software program by Hoopers Multimedia, written specifically for teachers teaching in Australia to Australian kids. It features aduio and visual components, with the auditory focussed on clear, well spoken Australian voices (a bit of a rarity in many software programs which have a strong tendency towards American voice overs!) The program is tied loosely to the story of the Hooper family who visit a beach in Australia (terrific if you are after a cross cultural teaching tool here, as you can tie in your spelling work with learning about Australian places, people and culture.)

There is a range of activities designed to appeal to a primary (elementary) audience which are simple, easy to play and motivating. The cartoon style visuals are engaging and fun and the color use is bright and cheerful without dominating the screen or taking over the learning experience. The activities include:

• Beach Game
• Sandcastle Game
• Fishing Game
• Diving Game
• Pier Game
• Windsurfing Game
• Fairground Game

Students can choose from the various activities, some of which relate to specific spelling lists (selected by the teacher in the teacher tools section) and some which are more generic.

Here are some handy tips for teaching a spelling component to your literacy program for children in those vital early primary years when they are gaining new vocabulary so fast but still have a fairly tenuous grip on spelling rules and spelling rule exceptions:

• Create a link between home and school so that teachers, parents and students all have a shared belief that learning to spell is an important skill
• Identify early in your academic year those students who have difficulties with spelling and potentially with other aspects of their learning, and put programs in place to remediate and manage these difficulties (Try this article on using a great program called Ginger for kids with dyslexia)
• Divide your class literacy activities into a combination of whole class and smaller group work tasks so you can program activities specifically at the level of challenge required for each of your students
• Introduce a spelling software program (such as this one for designed specifically for teaching in Australia) that can be used by students independently in class time or accessed at home if parents choose to purchase the program for home use
• Remember to use the spelling software as a tool for developing and practising skills rather than for teaching new content
• Explore the teacher tools settings of any spelling software you use so you are able to get the most from your software. For example, 'A Day at the Beach' allows you to program in lists of words for students so they can then choose the appropriate list and work on activities that are related to their weekly spelling list. This feature also means you can reinforce prior learning or go back over areas where a students has shown difficulty, simply by asking them to use an earlier word list when they play.

What a gem it is to find a spelling software program that is fully Australian! 'A Day the the Beach' embraces all that is Australian with a fun loving, bright, cheerful and enjoyable. For teachers teaching in Australia it is well worth a look as a spelling option that is apporirate and useable for Australian kids in Australian schools.